“Short life – sure love.” 

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1 Peter 1:17-25 

Fear of God is not the opposite of His love. Love with respect leads to healthy fear. It’s better to fear God’s displeasure than to suffer the anger of any number of people. God is angry at injustice & anything that keeps people from experiencing His love. Holiness is important because life is short, God is our judge, and the blood of Jesus is so precious. God paid the highest possible price to grant freedom to His children. The works which we were made to do will bear fruit, and earn us a reward in Heaven.

Different but Different

“Different, but different.”

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1 Peter 1:13-17.

Setting our hope on the grace to come means being ready for action, and free from distraction.

Because Jesus’ disciples are the children of God, their values, motivations & rewards are different from the rest of the world. To be holy means to be excellent in act & morality, and to be different in our attitude. Knowing the truth of God’s love, the return of Jesus and the judgment of God motivates His followers to live a holy life – not necessarily doing different things, but doing things differently.

The "Aha!" Moment

The Aha Moment - Audio

On Easter Sunday we reflect on the glorious salvation that Peter has been describing in the first 9 verses of 1 Peter chapter 1. He goes on to say that the prophets who prophesied of the messiah would have loved to have known how their prophecies would all come together in fulfilment - so many of them appeared contradictory, as though they must talk about different people. 

We go back to Luke 24 to witness the moments when some of Jesus' followers finally understood all that He did in order to fulfil the all the Scriptures and achieve our salvation. It was much more incredible than anyone had imagined, which is why decades later Peter still overflows with enthusiasm and praise to God for what He has done through the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Hope in Hardship

Hope in Hardship - Audio

In the wonderful hymn of praise that we find in 1 Peter 1:3-9 we discover the source of joy that never fades away regardless of what our circumstances may be. That joy is rooted in the inheritance that is kept safe in heaven for us; and the fact that we are kept safe the limitless power of God until the time when we receive that inheritance from Him. In this message we remind ourselves of the assurance we have of God's grace that we access through faith; and we discover the value of trials which cause our faith to be refined and displayed to God's increasing glory; our benefit and the blessing of those our lives touch.